Acquisition
by Mthaytr
Summary: Multipart AU. In the first years of Meiji, Gin is a politician, Rangiku's a prostitute, Aizen's a murderer and Kira is caught in the middle of it all. Loyalties are divided, people are broken, and in the end, is death the only redemption?  GinRan, GinKira
1. Chapter 1

It was a cold day in February, towards what would be the end of a harsh winter, when Matsumoto Rangiku and Ichimaru Gin met for the first time. He was the young son of a Daimyo, she an orphan gifted with brilliant skills in thievery. Up until that day, she had been wandering the countryside, alone, always being careful not to steal from someone who could catch her. Careful to stay alive.

But it had been a hard winter for everyone, and Rangiku was getting desperate. Desperate enough to steal from a lord's son.

When she grabbed his purse and ran, he didn't even turn around, but called one of his lackeys to catch her for him - he couldn't be bothered to do it himself – then sat on a patch of bare ground to wait as she was dragged, struggling, back up the street.

When his guard held the girl in front of the young boy, she spat in his face. Gin just kept smiling.

"I hope ya realize who you're stealing from." He wiped the spit off, watching her interestedly.

"Yes, actually, I do. You're a pompous ass of a noble, with too much money for your own good and not enough heart to actually help the people you're supposed to be ruling." Her eyes burned with anger, and he couldn't help but notice the hunger in her face, the layers of dirt that coated her blonde hair. His expression never faltered.

"That's quite an accusation ta be making towards the person who decides if ya live or die, isn't it?"

"Are you threatening to kill a woman? I knew you were low, but I never knew you were _that_ much of a worm." Not even the threat of death seemed to phase her. He liked that.

Gin's guard tightened his grip on the girl by way of punishment – no one had ever spoken to the young lord like that – but Gin put up a hand to stop him, for precisely that same reason.

"What's your name?"

She blinked and gave him a wary look, unsure of the reason for his sudden curiosity.

"Matsumoto Rangiku. Why do you want to know?"

"I like ya, Rangiku. Want t' come work in my house?" Gin could see that his guard was not happy, but that didn't bother him in the slightest. He motioned to let the girl go.

She blinked again as she found her arms released, and her feet back on the ground.

"…I try to steal your purse, and you give me a job? Are you mentally deficient?"

"Somethin' like that."

She couldn't help but start laughing.

"You know what, I like you too."

---

The story spread throughout the village, and people wondered if Ichimaru Gin was kinder than they had given him credit for. After no change in his behavior, save for his new blonde partner-in-crime, they decided that he was just as bad as they had thought. And they were right.

It wasn't his kindness of heart that had made him save the life of that girl. She was fiery, she was resilient. Unbreakable. She talked to him as if he was a real person and not some kind of god. With her, there were no impetuous airs, no faked nobility. People were who they were and that was that.

In short, she fascinated him. He knew that nothing he could do would hurt her, and that meant the world to him.

Years later, she would prove her resilience time and time again. If she hadn't, he wouldn't have kept coming back.

---

Not so very long afterwards, when the two friends were no longer children but not yet adults, the Bakumatsu began. Gin's father, his only caretaker, died in the service of the Shogunate, and the two went their separate ways – out of necessity rather than desire.

Gin joined the Patriots for a short year before the Tokugawa crumbled. It was there, amidst the blood and chaos that was creating a new age, that he met Aizen Sousuke.

---

Gin let out a small laugh as he and his mentor finally escaped from the overlarge throne room. He had paid his respects to the Emperor Meiji, faked obeisance as was expected, smiling ceaselessly in a way that he knew both fascinated and repulsed those around him. In return for a job in the government, he pledged his undying devotion to the supposed god on earth.

But only one man would ever earn his undying devotion, and that man was not the Emperor Meiji.

"You find that amusing?" he asked, but clearly he did as well. He smiled at Gin, kindly, in the way he did when someone was watching. As soon as the last guard was out of hearing range, Gin responded.

"Yeah, actually. The Emp'ror's something of a egotistic ass, isn't he?" The "Let's take'm down a few notches" was implied.

"So he is." Aizen's eyes gleamed with anticipation – the beginning preparations were being made, allies created and found. His position as advisor to the throne, awarded for distinguished service during the Revolution, made it much easier to infiltrate lower ranks with lackeys. And no one suspected.

"Gin, you finally have the time and the power to do whatever you choose."

His grin was almost childlike in its enthusiasm – bur around the edges, there lingered a tinge of darkness. Malevolance.

"Ne, ne, Aizen-taichou! Can I play tonight?"

Aizen smiled fondly at Gin's exuberance.

"I suppose."

---

Gin's first stop that night was to the wife of the Minister of Internal Affairs.

Women liked Gin. He invaded their personal space, touched them constantly, smiled incessantly. He insisted on talking to them as if they were his equals – a novelty many women had never experienced, and many craved.

This woman was educated – intelligent, a scholar of sorts. The day she and Gin met, during a meeting with her husband, he asked her opinion on affairs of the state – and she fell in love. Each time they met after that, her need for him only deepened.

Gin found her blind adoration exhilarating. He loved her neediness, and she loved the way his hand on her shoulder held so many breathy promises.

In the end, however, she was only a toy. He would break her, like he had so many others before.

For now, he offered her a smile that promised wonders, and a chaste kiss that left her burning. But he wouldn't sate her – there was work to be done tonight.

---

Not long after, he found himself in the pleasure district of West Tokyo. He found a place that looked clean and wealthy – a sure sign of quality in this business – and entered, asking the madam for her best lay. A few minutes later, she led him to a door covered with gold paint and blue glass meant to look like jewels, then bowed and left.

As he quietly opened the door, he had a strange feeling about this girl – she had not looked up, so he couldn't see her face, but the mass of blonde hair seemed extremely familiar. Too familiar for comfort.

"…Rangiku?" He paused, partaking of the view – she was sprawled on the bed, entirely and gloriously naked. Her head shot up, and he was sure.

"Izzat you, Ran-chan?" Her surprise at hearing her name turned to shock at realizing who had spoken. She slowly smiled, which turned into a hearty grin within seconds. She sat up quickly, evidently forgetting that she was naked despite the fact that his eyes were quite clearly planted on her recently acquired and rather large assets.

"Gin, you sly bastard. What are you doing in the capital?"

"I think the better question ta ask is, whatcha doin' in a place like this?"

Suddenly, she remembered the situation, and she looked away from him in shame, though she made no move to cover up. The palpable silence was broken by a sigh, leaving a certain awkwardness instead.

"I'm working. I didn't have the option of joining the Patriots like you did. I needed the money. What kind of jobs do you think there are for a woman like me?

"Here, at least, I don't have a husband or a father or a brother dominating my life, telling me what to do. I can do what I want, live the way I want. And I have food."

There was another awkward silence.

"Well, I guess you're doin' what's best for ya, Ran-chan." His smile betrayed no change in emotion. He paused.

"I think I should get 'nother girl, ne?" Sleeping with her would be awkward; she was too much a man. Too much a friend.

At this, she smiled, expression slowly turning seductive. She had been through worse things in her life than being paid to have sex with Ichimaru Gin.

"That won't be necessary. I think you'll like some of the things I've learned while you were away."

---

"Did you find anything last night?" Aizen asked upon Gin's return to their shared quarters.

"Nope. Nothin'."

Aizen sincerely hoped that this was the last time Gin would ever lie to him.

---

Gin didn't come to work that day.

Aizen smiled and made vague excuses. No one thought twice.

---

The next day, Gin staked out the new university, right by the capitol building. These students were on their own for the first time, unsure of the world, tentative. Naïve.

His heart raced in anticipation.

He asked the head of the school if he could sit in on classes. The man fell over himself to grant Gin permission, on account of Ichimaru being a government official, though no one knew quite what he did.

He found a target during the first class. He was a young boy, pretty enough and shy – his insecurity only made him more appealing. Gin offered him playful smiles, stood too close to be strictly proper, and touched the boy's hands in ways that made him swoon.

They continued to meet for days, a week, afterwards, Gin became his best friend, a furtive lover, the mentor he needed so much in this new place.

Two weeks later, the boy disappeared, and no one thought to ask the young official who sat in on classes.

He visited Rangiku again that night.

---

"I got one last night, Aizen-taichou. He's where he's s'posed to be."

"Excellent work. I knew I could trust you."

Gin's smile grew. Praise meant rewards later.

---

Rangiku confronted him about it not long afterwards.

They had been walking together at dusk – he could use his paid time with her however he chose – when she took a deep breath and spoke.

"Gin, did you hear about that boy who disappeared last week?"

"Sure didn't." They paused. Rangiku was not fooled.

"I had one of his professors in here not long ago. He mentioned that the two of you had become very… friendly."

"Oh, that boy? He was cute. Such a shame." He didn't stop smiling.

She turned to him, eyes accusing.

"That was you, wasn't it?"

"Maa, why would ya ever say such a thing? You're so mean t' me, Ran-chan."

"Don't lie to me, Gin."

For once, he sobered.

"'m not lyin', Ran-chan. Kid's fine."

She frowned.

"What'd you do with him." She knew his habits, his vices. Young, naïve kids just adored him, and he loved every moment of it.

"He's with the American ambassador. He was only too happy t' help me out."

She tensed.

"You sold him."

"Such a vulgar way to say't. He helps me. 'Ts what I want, so 'ts what he wants. I reward'm every so often."

Rangiku frowned, vaguely disgusted.

"What do you get from it? Other than the massive power trip."

"It's politics. I get the ambassadors what they want, an' they're loyal."

"So you give them sex slaves." She paused, realizing that that was rather rich coming from a prostitute, then cleared her throat forcefully.

"Loyal to who? Gin, you've never had a drop of ambition in your life. You're working for someone, aren't you?"

Gin, by way of a response, put his smile back on.

"This isn't the sort of thing you'd do on your own. You like to leave them hanging. You find it amusing." She had found it amusing too, once, when they were young and Gin's targets were the weepy noble women who cried for days when he left.

One rumor said that there had been suicides. Gin had found that entirely too amusing.

"Ran-chan knows me too well, huh?"

"Definitely."

"'m not gonna tell, though. He doesn' like ya."

She decided not to ask how that man knew her enough to like or dislike her.

"Why is that."

"'Cause I like ya."

She couldn't help but smile – he had that effect on her. That, and the fact that this powerful man would consider a prostitute to be a threat was profoundly amusing.

"You're not going to give me away to some rich French man, are you?"

"Nah. Ya'd never go anyway." All of his acquisitions had been given away of their own free will.

Rangiku sobered again.

"Those kids you charm, Gin. They had lives in front of them."

There was a silence.

"So'd I. But I like this one so much better."

After all, he, too had been "acquired." Gin only hoped his conquests liked it half as much as he had.

---

Later that evening, as she sat half-naked on the floor with a bottle of sake, she laughed as she finished hours worth of musing. Her earlier conversation with Gin had been enough to make her want to get stupendously drunk, a feat at which she happily succeeded. But, through the haze of alcohol, she could still think.

She had realized with a kind of pride, that that conversation proved that he trusted her – trusted her enough to unguard himself. Enough to tell her these horrible things he did. All because she wouldn't blink twice. Wouldn't hold it aguanst him.

Because he knew that nothing he did, no matter how horrible, would make her leave him.

He, despite everything, was still her only friend. Because although he had his faults, he was still the only man she had ever met who honestly treated her as an equal.

---

Thirteen more boys disappeared from the university within the next several months.

Gin began to provide signed documents to worried families, signed by an advisor to the emperor, that their sons – and occasionally daughters – were working for the government. The men worked at top-secret jobs, the women served and cared for those men. All were under an oath to keep silent about all proceedings.

Some of the parents looked like they might cry from joy when Gin told them how well their children were serving the nation.

He liked to think that it wasn't all a lie.

---

Not long afterwards, another young boy caught Ichimaru Gin's eye.

This one wasn't just pretty – he was gorgeous. The top of his class. Smart. Overconfident.

After another few days, Gin decided to break his pattern of conquests and approach the boy.

He cheerfully pulled the boy out of class, on a Thursday afternoon sometime during the Tokyo summer. He approached the professor nonchalantly, as if he hadn't just interrupted the lecture.

" 'scuze me. Can I borrow the blondie?" he asked with a pleasant smile. The professor fell over himself accepting, hurriedly pushing the rather flushed boy towards Gin, who thanked him insincerely, bowed, and left, pulling the boy out by his hand.

The boy flushed even more at the contact.

Once outside, Gin quite happily pulled him off to a quiet, secluded area in some trees, only then stopping to look at his catch.

"Nice ta finally meetcha, Izuru-chan. I know all about ya so no need to introduce yourself."

Kira was a bit taken aback by the man's informality, but that feeling was overcome by a sense of pride at being picked by Ichimaru Gin. It had become something of an honor, a status symbol, to be picked, as all his charges were rewarded with jobs within the government.

"Thank you very much for your interest, Ichimaru-san." The way he said it made it apparent that he didn't think the interest undeserved.

Gin's smile grew.

"Cocky little thing, aintcha? All the better though."

There was a pause, but not long enough for Izuru to get a word in.

"Yer a pretty little thing, mm? Whatcha say we go out'n do somethin'?" Kira breathed sharply as Gin's hand ran slowly through his hair.

"I hardly think… I wouldn't want to miss class." His hesitation showed clearly that they had left his comfort zone. Gin was glad he had made the decision to pick this one – the boy's awkwardness was just so adorable.

"Maa, but my way's so much more fun."

The blonde sighed.

"Alright, but just this once."

---

He would never be able to say no to that man.

Gin was back the next day with a gift. A piece of string, actually, that he had picked up on a whim.

"Na, Izuru-chan, isn't it so very pretty if you knot it like so?"

This man, who played with string and skipped work – more importantly, encouraged others to skip as well – was not what Kira had been expecting. Ichimaru had to be some kind of genius to have those particular quirks and still have the position he did, so the boy decided that he would smile and act interested – even though with every passing moment he was unknowingly charmed.

"It's very nice, Ichimaru-san." He watched as Gin made a bracelet of it and put it on Izuru's wrist.

"Will ya keep it on for me?"

"…Alright." For the sake of his future career.

---

The next day, Kira pleaded to stay in class. Gin agreed, under the condition that he be allowed to stay with Izuru. Reluctantly, the boy agreed.

Izuru soon found that it was very difficult to concentrate on lessons when Gin's fingers were playing with the hair at the nape of his neck. He dismissed it as another of the man's strange quirks.

"Ichimaru-san… would you please stop that? It's very difficult to concentrate."

"Maa, don't ya like it?" Kira blushed in response.

"Th… That's entirely beside the point. I can't keep focused."

Gin grinned and petted Kira again, eliciting a shiver.

"So ya can't think when I touch ya, 's that it?"

The boy sighed, but didn't deny it.

"I thought you picked me because of my grades. I can't keep them up if you keep distracting me."

"Nah. I picked ya 'cause you're jus' so cute. I couldn' resist."

Izuru had no response for that.

---

Later that night, as he lay, sated, on his shared futon, Gin asked Sousuke for a favor.

"Ne, Aizen-taichou… can I keep this one?"

Aizen smiled indulgently.

"Just this one, and only if you promise to take care of him."

"'m sure he'll be useful t' ya, Aizen-taichou."


	2. Chapter 2

Rangiku had eyes in every part of the city. No one would ever admit it, but prostitutes made the best spies – they had access to men from every level of society. She found no shame in using her assets to her best advantage – she now serviced every teacher at the Academy at least once every two weeks. She felt it was her duty to keep a watch on the disappearances.

She knew every time Gin picked a new one – and soon after they were picked, she would try to warn them. But she was a woman, and for that her words held no meaning.

She only hoped that his new little blondie would be more open. He wasn't yet entirely in Gin's grasp – it might be early enough to save him.

So one day, after classes, when she was sure that that man wouldn't be there, she waited for him in the shade of the eaves.

"Kira Izuru, may I have a word with you?"

Kira frowned, but had become accustomed to odd happenings, and stepped over to see what she wanted.

"I have a meeting to attend, so please make it brief."

"With Gin, right? That's why I'm here."

Izuru stiffened.

"How do you know about Ichimaru-san and my meeting?"

"You'n him? It's an open secret. Listen, Izuru, that man's bad news. Get out while you still can. I'm Rangiku, by the way," she added as an afterthought.

This woman's informality with him – calling both Izuru and Gin by their first names without prelude – made Kira uncomfortable, in a way that reminded him too much of Gin. He paused.

"Then why is it that you are such good friends with him, Rangiku-san?"

She paused, taken aback, before slowly smiling.

"You're a smart one, aren't you? What tipped you off?"

"You both have a very similar way of invading a person's personal space."

She laughed.

"Guess we do, don't we. Gin and I go way back." She sobered. "That's why I can tell you to be careful around him. I seriously doubt it's a legal assistant he's after."

Kira blinked.

"Then what is he looking for?" For the first time, a bit of nervousness slipped into his voice. Unsurety. And for the first time, she saw exactly what it was that Gin wanted.

She sighed.

"Nevermind, kid. You'll see sooner than you think." A pause. "What do you say the two of us go out and have some drinks tonight?"

"Only if you pay."

She laughed again, and slapped his back in a way that made it obvious she had grown up around men.

"I like you already, kid."

---

A few nights later, Gin was back at Matsumoto's brothel.

"Hey, Ran-chan," he said as he plopped lazily onto a cushion in the corner of her room. Rangiku looked up from her book – the Tales of Genji – shut it, and sat up. Not one to dance around an issue – Gin's exact opposite in that regard – she wasted no time.

"Gin, I met your latest plaything a few days ago. Izuru."

There was a silence, and neither looked at the other.

"He's a good kid. What do you want with him?"

There was another pause.

"Izuru-chan? I don' want anythin' from 'im."

"Nothing he doesn't want himself, right?"

"Nah, I have no plans for'm. I really like the kid, believe me or not."

Rangiku sighed.

"So he's to be yours, then? A personal prize?"

"He's a challenge, Ran-chan. Has a mind of 'is own, this'n. Not needy." He grinned. "But I think that when he falls, he's gonna fall hard."

It wasn't apparent whether he was referring to falling in love or falling from power.

Rangiku frowned.

"That's exactly what I'm afraid of." She paused.

"Don't hurt that boy. He doesn't deserve it."

"Don' worry. I'll be gentle." He paused. "I think he's gonna be a keeper."

Rangiku smiled slightly, mildly relieved. She put her book on the table, then slowly removed her haori.

"You come here for a reason, then?"

---

"So. Ran-chan tells me you two've met."

Kira flushed slightly, unable to tell if Gin was unhappy or not.

"Yes, we have. She is an interesting woman. We had a drink together."

"Maa, you didn't invite me, Izuru-chan?" Despite his informality, he never complained when Kira called him "Ichimaru-san."

"I'm sorry, should I have?" Ichimaru's presence in Kira's life had begun bringing out the boy's innate desire to please, a trait almost forgotten under his bravado.

Gin put on a rather convincing frown.

"D'you not like my company, then? Izzat it?"

Izuru flushed.

"That's not it at all. I… well, Rangiku-san invited me and I accepted."

"Invite me nex' time, then?"

"…Alright."

Gin's smile returned. Slowly but surely, he took control of the boy's life.

---

Gin rarely visited Aizen's office, but on the few occasions he was summoned, he knew it would be important.

"You wanted me, Aizen-taichou?" He knelt in front of Aizen's low desk, watching a young, dark-haired woman come in with tea.

"Yes. I wanted you to meet my new girl, Hinamori Momo-kun. She is to replace you, when you are promoted."

This was the first Gin had heard of any promotion.

"Aww, do I gotta leave ya?"

"Yes. Unfortunately, one of our captains recently, and with little notice, departed his post. We require a man to fill his position."

The girl left the tea on the desk, bowed to Aizen, and left as quietly as she had come.

"Unfortunate. Yeah." Gin grinned, and changed the subject. "Sure got an obedient one, ne?"

Aizen smiled darkly.

"Yes. She is enamored with me, and as such I find her to be particularly useful."

Gin's eyes glinted.

"They always are, aren't they?"

---

"Izuru-chan, I have a proposal for ya. Wanna join the government? Workin' under me, o'course."

Kira looked up from his schoolwork, hope radiating from his face.

"Really? Could I really, Ichimaru-san?"

"'course. Thataway your school wouldn' be takin' all our time, huh? And it's Ichimaru-taichou now, actually."

The boy smiled, glowing.

"It would be an honor, Ichimaru-taichou."

Gin saw a mark of progress in how substantially Izuru's response differed from the last time he had given the boy an honor.

---

Occasionally, Gin would bring Kira along on his outings with Matsumoto.

She was glad to see that Ichimaru cared for the boy on at least some level, but the boy's growing acquiescence worried her some.

In everything he did, he had started looking to Gin for approval, for reassurance. He smiled less and blushed more. It had only been worse since he had been given a job to work under Gin.

She realized that the process was complete when he began to walk two steps behind his Ichimaru-taichou rather than beside.

---

Gin knew his boy was ready – perfectly dependent, now. He needed Gin like he needed air. Time apart from his captain was like a punishment. He cast down his eyes when anyone but Gin spoke to him, and walked in a subordinate's place rather than an equal's.

But most importantly, Gin saw the unguarded adoring looks that Izuru gave him when he thought his captain wasn't looking.

The boy's blind loyalty thrilled him. He would learn whatever his captain had to teach, and he would teach his Izuru about love.

Kira would soon learn that there could be no love without pain.

---

Three weeks later, Hinamori Momo was found dead, naked, with a stab wound in her chest, and "Death to the Patriot Swine" carved in poor hiragana on her forehead. Upon closer examination, some of the blood could be seen to come from small cuts all the way up and down her small body. The fact that they had bled meant that she had been alive at the time.

Aizen Sousuke cried at her funeral, but Gin refused to attend. He was, after all, incapable of tears.

A hundred miles away, a boy called Hitsugaya Toshirou grasped her last letter, livid with an uncontrollable rage.

---

After the incident with the murder of that poor girl downtown, Rangiku had begun to keep a watch on as much of the city as she could without sleeping with every man in Tokyo. Gin insisted that he had had nothing to do with the child's death, and it didn't seem a lie, but she was still suspicious.

So, when she heard of a young sword corps officer asking around in the lower quarters about Ichimaru Gin, she couldn't help but get involved.

They met, thanks to one of her informants, in front of the university. He was younger than she had expected, maybe seventeen or eighteen, with a shock of pure white hair that didn't quite fit in his uniform cap, and a look on his face that spoke of murder.

"I'm Lieutenant Hitsugaya Toshirou. A man I met said you had information for me?"

"Matsumoto Rangiku. A pleasure. And that depends on what kind of info you're looking for, and why."

He paused, collecting himself.

"Right. I need any information you can give me about Ichimaru Gin."

Rangiku raised an eyebrow.

"He wears red fundoshi, his favorite flavor of mochi is cucumber, and he likes to play with string and skip work." She smirked. "Gotta be more specific, Shirou-chan."

Suddenly his fists balled, and anger erupted in his face. His eyes made it clear that he was playing no games.

"The only one allowed to call me that is Momo, and she is _dead_, probably killed by this man you're trying to protect. If you have information for me, I want to hear it. If not, do us both a favor and leave before I lose control of my temper."

Rangiku sobered instantly.

"What would you say to getting a drink with me?"

---

Matsumoto downed her first cup of sake almost the second they sat. She turned to look at Toshirou, who was determinedly looking anywhere but her breasts, and decided that this kid might be worth risking something for.

"I could be wrong, but I don't think Gin's the one you're looking for." She watched him intently after setting down her cup.

"What makes you say that?"

It was clear that Hitsugaya did not trust her. She didn't blame him – she had personal knowledge of the man who he thought had killed his… friend? She smiled a little, sadly, realizing that the girl he cared so much for must have been a lover. How quickly a perfect life could be disrupted.

"I dunno. A hunch, let's call it. What makes you so quick to condemn him? You've obviously never even met the man."

He pulled out a crumpled, much-read letter.

"Momo wrote me regularly. She was working in secret for the government, so I don't know where to start asking – the one thing she did say was that a man named Ichimaru Gin occasionally visited the office where she worked. He scared her, enough to write about it. She was not easily frightened."

Matsumoto sighed, cursing Gin's quirks and his tendency to smile all the time like he had something to hide. She knew he did, dammit, but that sort of thing was what got people convicted for crimes they never committed.

"He has that effect on people he doesn't care to impress." She paused. "Momo was your girl, wasn't she?"

He bit his lip discreetly.

"Never officially… When she came back, though, I was going to…"

He caught his breath and changed the topic.

"At any rate, how do you know so much about this Ichimaru guy?" he asked suspiciously.

"Gin and I go way back. He saved my life once, took me in when I was starving. Treated me like a real human being instead of just a kid. Just a woman."

Her meaning was clear – the man had a heart. She took a sip of her newly refilled sake cup.

"I don't think he could have killed her in cold blood," she said quietly.

But she had seen the kinds of marks the girl was left with before, on Kira. The thought made her shiver.

Hitsugaya watched her, ready for any sign of a lie, and found none. He cleared his throat to break the silence.

"That leaves me with nowhere to start looking." He cast his eyes down, disappointed.

She sat straight suddenly, and downed the rest of her cup.

"I'll help you out then, kid. We'd make a perfect team – my boobs are too big for anyone to take me seriously, and you're just too young. Maybe together we can get something done."

Toshirou couldn't help but smile at that. They had no hope. None at all.

---

The next day, they met up again. Matsumoto knew that Gin, and maybe Kira, would be visiting that day, and she thought she'd start by asking some questions.

Hitsugaya looked around the street awkwardly, trying conspicuously not to be noticed in his civilian garb. Matsumoto grinned and grabbed his hand energetically.

"You're my boyfriend if anyone asks, 'kay?" She winked at him playfully as he blushed. The young ones were so much fun to play with.

He refused to grace that with an answer.

She bounced off down the street dragging a sullen Toshirou behind her, in the direction of her brothel, perfectly aware that moving like that accentuated the advantage of her breasts. That only made her laugh.

When they arrived, she found Gin squatting on a rock, lecturing a bemusedly smiling Kira about the wonders of spinning tops.

"Hey, Gin, Izuru."

"Heya Ran-chan." He stared suspiciously at Toshirou, who kicked the dirt awkwardly. "Who'zat?"

"This's Toshirou. He's my new boyfriend. Cute, huh? This's Gin, sweetie, and the pretty blonde is Izuru. Say hello."

"A pleasure to meet you," Hitsugaya grumbled, unhappy with the general situation, and with having to bandy words with the man who might have killed Momo.

Gin's smile didn't leave, but he sensed a lie.

"Nice t' meetcha, Toshirou. I hope you'n my Ran-chan are havin' fun."

Rangiku sensed something very similar to aggression emanating from them both, and decided that the time was ripe for a subject change.

"Yes, yes we are. Very much." She smiled brightly, but Toshirou spoke before she could continue.

"I heard about that girl from the secret operations department. That must be something of an embarrassment to your division. It's your job to prevent tragedies like this. Did you know the girl?" he asked in a very hostile and pointed sort of way.

Rangiku sighed. That was hardly the way to begin a polite conversation. There was nothing she could do about oncoming calamity now. She should have warned him beforehand not to speak, dammit.

"Saw her once or twice. Seemed like a good kid." The hostility intensified.

"Know who did that to her?"

"Nope."

"Any idea who'd know?"

"Secret operations tends to keep their operations, y'know, secret."

The feeling intensified until poor Izuru looked like he might faint, and Matsumoto knew that she had to step in.

"Sorry for the interrogation. Toshirou's a junior reporter, and hopes that this story might be his big break."

Gin fired her with a look that said he knew she was lying, but she refused to break face. She had no illusions about whether or not he would believe her, or even how much time that ploy would buy. It might save Toshirou, but now it was _her_ head on the chopping block.

"Rangiku, wouldja mind comin' inside with me for a minute?" When he used her real name, she knew it was serious.

Suddenly, her voice caught in her throat and all she could do was nod wordlessly at Kira and Hitsugaya before following him in. Once they were in, he clenched a fist and turned to her forcefully. Angrily.

"Why the questions 'bout poor Hinamori-chan, now? Why th' lies, Rangiku? I thought we had an accord."

After all, he didn't lie to her. She sighed.

"Fine. Toshirou's a cop, sword corps. Momo was his girl. I offered to help him out, to find out who did it. The kid was desperate, Gin. He thinks you did it."

"Does he now. Do you?"

She bit her lip.

"No, I don't. I believe you when you tell me something. But at the same time, I know that you're hiding something. So I thought that you would be the best person to ask, for a start."

There was a long silence, in which Gin's emotionless expression slowly slipped into a frown.

"Don' do any more askin', yeah?"

There was another silence.

"Why not? Give me one good reason not to."

"I don' wanna see ya hurt, Ran-chan."

There was only one reason he'd say that. She couldn't prevent a cold shiver from running down her spine.

"I'm a whore. I'm not valuable enough to kill." She realized slowly that she should have cared more that Gin's anonymous superior felt she was a threat.

"Depends on what scale you're usin'."

If she had been worth enough to be a threat to that great man, then she was valuable enough to kill, especially if she started asking awkward questions. She refused to let that knowledge frighten her.

"I'm not going to run away screaming, if that's what you think. There's a crazy man out there, possibly in the government from what you're saying, and if you think I'm going to just let this slide then you'd better think again. I thought you knew me better than that."

Gin's smile slowly returned.

"I do, Rangiku. I know ya too well." The threat of death had never phased her, after all.

Suddenly, he reached out and put his hand behind her head, and pulled them both into a hot, hungry kiss, unlike anything they'd shared before. She couldn't really say that she minded.

Because every movement was like an apology.


	3. Chapter 3

I am so sorry about the formatting issues on the last one - FFN has a habit of stripping any formatting I do. If you're having issues, please visit my shared fic journal on LJ, Dumbtasticduo.

---

"Gin, would you kill them if I asked you to?"

There was a silence. Aizen didn't look up from his paperwork, and Gin's smile seemed frozen in place.

"Why would ya ask a thin' like that, Aizen-taichou?"

"I want to be sure that I can trust you."

Gin would have laughed at his captain's jealousy if the situation hadn't been so dangerous.

"Stop thinkin' 'bout them so much. They don' matter. 'Sides, it wouldn' do ya any good t' have 'em killed now. Be suspicious, that would.

"They ain' hurtin ya none."

Aizen smiled dangerously in response.

"Should that ever change, however, I will not guarantee their safety." His eyes glinted.

Gin hadn't told his captain about the suspicious young sword corps officer who was investigating Momo's death with Rangiku. He was grateful for his own foresight.

"Remember that she is being watched, Gin."

---

Matsumoto knew that something was wrong when Izuru showed up at her door, alone. She invited him in worriedly, trying not to think about what might happen if Gin found out.

"So, what brings you here, Izuru?" she asked kindly.

He looked down slightly.

"Matsumoto-san, have you spoken with Ichimaru-taichou lately?"

She blinked, confused.

"Not in several weeks, why?"

He paused, frowning.

"I… was afraid of that. Taichou has been… preoccupied, lately."

His captain had been smiling less, and that alone was more than enough to worry him.

"He hasn't been quite himself since the last time you spoke to him. Matsumoto-san… I apologize for asking but… what happened between you?"

She bit her lip – nothing that either had said or done should have upset him at all… Unless she was in danger. Unless she was being watched.

"Has he said anything about me?" she asked.

"W-well… he asked me not to come see you again, actually… But I'm worried about him, Matsumoto-san! I thought… that you might be able to help him."

He looked away, ashamed that he could not help his captain when he needed it most. It did not escape him that she was the only person his Ichimaru-taichou thought of as a friend, not himself.

"I don't know about that, Izuru," she said grimly. "You need to leave. Don't tell anyone that you were here. Lie if you have to." She raised a hand to silence his protest.

"If he told you not to come, then your life is probably in danger. Take the back door. Sayuri will show you out."

Kira, confused but nevertheless obedient, stood to leave.

"Matsumoto-san, truly, do you think that you can help him?"

She paused.

"Yes," she said, just to see him smile – but even to herself, her promise sounded hollow.

---

It had been several weeks since the disastrous incident meeting Ichimaru Gin, and Toshirou was surprised do see that he wasn't on any wanted posters. No thugs had followed him down dark alleys to test his skill with swords. He had been sure that Ichimaru would try to do the same thing to him as the man had done to Momo – the fact that he hadn't was almost enough to make him think that Matsumoto was right. Maybe Gin wasn't the man he was after.

He still wasn't completely convinced, however. Something about that man just made him uneasy.

Very few people on the street seemed to know anything at all about Momo, and the only person who might have been a witness could only say that it had been a man, dark-haired and broad-shouldered. But this witness couldn't even be sure if that person had been the criminal or if he had just happened to be out that night. So, Toshirou decided that, given his negligible progress in other areas, and the absence of a bounty on his head, the time was right to visit the government.

Early one morning, he set out for the military offices, where he was sure the secret operations must work. Once there, he asked around for Gin's friends – and failing that, acquaintances – and for people who had known Momo, but came up only with Kira for the former.

However, for the latter, a large group of willing informants eventually found him. None had known her well, but one suggested that Aizen Sousuke might, possibly, have been her superior. After all, he had cried at the poor girl's funeral.

Hitsugaya thanked him profusely, handing the worker a few coins in gratitude, though his own salary was quite small.

When he finally found Aizen's office, deep within the military compound, the stark bareness of it struck him as odd. Despite the man's prowess as a warrior and a leader, the captain's room was stark in its whiteness, with only a solitary painting of sakura blossoms to give the room life. There were no medals, no letters of thanks from the Emperor – Hitsugaya knew the man must have them. The fact that he didn't display them only increased his esteem in the boy's eyes.

Like his room, the man at the desk also seemed quiet and unassuming. The way Aizen smiled as he invited the young officer in automatically put Toshirou at ease.

"Come in. May I help you?" he asked kindly, in an almost paternal way.

"Yes, sir. Are you the Captain Aizen?" Toshirou saluted smartly as he spoke, reminded suddenly of his training as an officer in the presence of such a great man.

"I am," he responded.

He motioned for Hitsugaya to come sit in front of his desk, the gesture of an equal, not a superior. The boy accepted, bowing once in gratitude before kneeling.

"I'm here on business, sir. I am a police officer of the sword corps, and I've heard rumors that you might have known Hinamori Momo in some way."

"I did," he responded gently, as if sensing Toshirou's true connection to the girl in question.

"Then you were her captain?"

"I was. Hinamori-kun was a very sweet girl, and served me well. I am truly horrified by her brutal death." The sadness in his voice spoke volumes to the boy.

"I'm investigating her death. Can you tell me about any groups or people who might have reason to do something like this? It seems that it might have been a political killing, based on the message left by the murderer."

His voice choked as he tried not to think about it, about the blood on her skin or the words carved into her lifeless body

"There are a few rebel groups, I think, that might have tried to intimidate the Emperor or myself by such a death. But beyond that, you know as much as I. None have claimed responsibility." He paused. "Truly, I am sorry." He gave the boy a look of such piercing sorrow that he had to look away.

Toshirou rose slowly, then bowed.

"Thank you very much for your help, I wish you luck with your doings. Momo, I think, respected you very much." Aizen's eyes filled with tears that Toshirou could not look at, and with that, the boy turned and walked out.

After leaving, he headed straight for the Department of Internal Affairs' main office. The young man at the front door had seemed friendly enough, so Toshirou decided that he could risk asking some questions.

"Excuse me," he asked politely, "what can you tell me about the rebel groups in the area?"

The man smiled in return, obviously thinking that such matters would be over a boy's head.

"I don't think that this is a matter for you to be investigating, young man. But if you're curious, I'll tell you." He acted as if he were giving Hitsugaya some great boon, and the boy twitched angrily. "There's the Red Army faction in West Tokyo, of course, that's the biggest. The Sekihotai factions are still causing trouble in places."

He leaned down and whispered conspiratorially, as if speaking to a small child.

"But, we're about to unmask a traitor in the government itself! We intercepted a letter from the man a few days ago. Aizen-taichou is in charge of investigation. He'll find the guy. You can be sure of that."

Hitsugaya twitched again at the man's condescending tone, but didn't comment. The man's last words intrigued him, and he didn't want to insult his source. At the mention of traitor, he automatically thought of Ichimaru.

"Can I see the letter?" he asked.

The man gave him a patronizing look, and Toshirou had to suppress a growl.

"Of course not. This is business for the adults. Now go away, before someone important sees you and gets angry at me."

Hitsugaya gave him a look of pure contempt, and he looked vaguely shocked that someone so young would be capable of that look.

"I'm a sword corps officer, you _idiot_. And I'm sixteen." His tone was menacing, but this time the officer seemed determined not to let him in based on rudeness alone.

"Sorry, but no."

Hitsugaya briefly considered proving just why he had become an officer at such a young age, but decided against it. As satisfying as it might be now, that would be far more trouble than it was worth.

Instead, he stalked off, a plan already forming in his mind.

---

Izuru had been meaning to speak with his captain for a while, and found the perfect opportunity as he found his captain at a rare lunch break, unsmiling and staring into the distance.

"Ichimaru-taichou?" As soon as Kira spoke, the smile was back up. The boy winced, recognizing a defense when he saw one, and wishing that his captain would decide he didn't need one around Izuru.

"Yeah, Izuru-chan? Somethin' botherin ya?" He had always been extremely good at noticing those sorts of things.

"Yes, sir… Are you alright, Ichimaru-taichou?"

"'Course I am. What makes ya ask that?" He watched the boy with interest.

"You've seemed… preoccupied, lately. I was wondering… well, I had been wondering if it was anything I might help you with." The "you're worrying me" was implied.

Gin's smile suddenly slipped, but it was up again almost instantly. He moved quickly to capture Izuru's lips with his own in a chaste kiss. Izuru smiled into it, putting his arms around his captain as he pulled away.

"Trus' me, Izuru, if ya can do anythin' for me, I'll let ya know."

And Kira smiled at the thought that he might be able to help after all.

---

A few hours later, he returned to Matsumoto's brothel, having calmed down some after the frustrating incident with the guard.

She was asleep, as was usual for that time of evening, and completely oblivious to the world, until a good swift kick in her side woke her up. She groaned sleepily.

"That was mean, Toshirou… What was that for?" She gave him her best pout look, but he was pointedly not looking at her in order to avoid falling for it.

"I have a job for you, Matsumoto. I need to get into the Department of Internal Affairs tonight. They won't let me in because I'm a kid, and there's something I need to see."

"Something about Momo?" She rolled onto her stomach to look at him.

"I think so." Though he had no real proof, he had a suspicion that Momo's killer was a part of the government, someone who had known her, and probably also had something to do with Ichimaru Gin.

"Alright then. I think I already know what you have in mind." She grinned slowly, thinking that this, she might enjoy.

---

Later that evening, Aizen called Gin into his room.

"I have an assignment for you, Gin. I want you to kill someone. A young, white-haired police officer by the name of Hitsugaya Toshirou. He's been investigating Hinamori's death, and I'm afraid he might be too clever for his own good."

There was a pause, and Gin's smile faltered.

"I don' think that would be a good idea."

Aizen fixed him with a piercing stare that made him very uncomfortable.

"And why might _that_ be?" he asked sharply.

"Ah… I've met the kid, see. Doesn' like me. Likely he'd star' yellin' 'bout who it was, minute he saw me, covered up or no. I'm kinda distinctive, see."

"And how does this boy know you?"

Gin paused.

"I wouldn' say 'know." He asked me once 'f I knew anythin' 'bout Hinamori-chan. Said I didn', don' think he believed me."

"How did he find out who you are? How did he find out where you were? You tend to move around unnoticed." Aizen sensed that Gin was hiding something, and did not like it.

"Dunno. Blind luck?" Gin's response was entirely too quick for Aizen's tastes.

"You're lying." Suddenly his hand flew up, hitting Gin's face with a loud crack. Gin fell to the floor easily, almost as if he had been expecting it.

"Not lyin', Aizen-taichou." His smile didn't leave as he sat up and touched his red jaw gingerly.

"You are. This has to do with that woman of yours, doesn't it, that whore!" Aizen's voice hadn't been this angry for as long as Gin could remember.

"No, sir."

Aizen hit Gin again, harder, and blood bubbled over his lower lip.

"Call your puppy. He was there when you met the boy, wasn't he. Send someone, actually. I want to hear what he has to say." His voice was calm now, but rage boiled tangibly under the surface.

Gin did so quickly, and moments later Kira arrived at the door, eyes widening in shock as he took in Aizen's uncharacteristically angry expression and his captain's bloody face. He automatically began to run to his captain's side, but Aizen's hand stopped him.

"Answer me honestly, Izuru," Aizen demanded. "Have you met a young boy by the name of Hitsugaya Toshirou?"

Kira looked towards his captain for reassurance. From behind Aizen, Gin nodded, giving him permission to tell the truth.

"Yes, sir. I have." Aizen smiled, threatening.

"And did this have anything to do with a woman, a blonde prostitute named Matsumoto Rangiku?"

Kira saw his captain shake his head almost imperceptibly. He bit his lip, knowing the consequences for lying, then took a deep breath and spoke.

"No, sir."

He didn't know what was going on, why Aizen had so much control over Ichimaru-taichou, or why the man was so angry, but he would continue to follow his captain's wishes until the last.

Gin nodded at him, reassuring, and Izuru almost smiled. But Aizen's face had become stormy, and hatred rolled off him like thunder.

"You lie. You both lie. I can feel it!" he growled menacingly.

---

As night fell, Rangiku and Hitsugaya were standing at the front of the Internal Affairs office. The guard had let them in easily enough when Matsumoto purred that they both had been called to see to the Minister. Once they were inside, he hit her for that.

The Minister's office was easy enough to find, and thank the gods the Minister still seemed to be in there. Toshirou hid himself around a corner so as not to be suspicious, and Rangiku knocked on the door, putting on the sultry expression that had earned her reputation. When the Minister opened the door, eye-level to a set of magnificent breasts, he nearly passed out.

"Hey, sweetheart. Someone told me you wanted a little… attention." She ran her hand up and down his arm, smiling as he turned beet red.

He gulped loudly.

"Uh… I think I know a room we can use…"

As he led her off, she grinned over her shoulder at Toshirou and nodded her head in the direction of the man's now open office. He wasted no time getting inside.

---

Gin had never seen Sousuke this angry, and it disturbed him a little. If the man didn't get control of his anger soon, he was likely to ruin all of his carefully-laid plans. Gin watched, unmoving, as his captain hit Kira to the floor in a rage.

"Taichou, see some reason…" he said in a halfhearted attempt at Izuru's defense.

Aizen's anger switched targets more rapidly than Gin would have thought possible.

"So, they're more important to you than I am?" The threat was unspoken, but all the more dangerous for that.

"No, taichou… I never said…"

"Then how do you like this?" he snarled. He drew his sword and in one smooth motion, stabbed Izuru in the stomach.

Kira screamed, and his eyes rolled back in his head, showing only bloodshot white.

Gin did nothing, did not move or blink as he watched the boy fall. Izuru's last thought as his world slipped into blackness, was that he was glad he could die in his captain's service, maybe even saving the life of the woman his master loved most.

---

It didn't take long for Toshirou to find the letter. The handwriting was plain and choppy – impossible to identify, he thought disappointedly.

The paper said something about the "upcoming coup," which didn't interest him as much as what was scrawled below it. An inventory, it seemed, with women's names and… prices, for each. He shuddered as he realized what that meant.

He had been putting the letter back where he found it, carefully removing any sign of his presence, when he noticed the corner of a paper sticking out from under the thin top layer of wood on the desk. It was an almost microscopic hideaway, more than enough to make Hitsugaya suspicious.

Slowly, he pulled the paper out, wondering what the minister needed to hide in such a secretive place.

And suddenly everything made sense.

He had to get out. Quickly.

---

Even as Izuru slumped to the floor, eyes unseeing, Aizen turned to Gin again. He raised his dripping sword in Gin's direction, challenging him to think even one thought against his master. Neither moved.

Suddenly, a man slammed the rice-paper door open with a force that snapped the thin wood.

"Sir, someone has snuck into the Minister's office and found your letter!" The messenger was too terrified to notice the contents of the scene before him, or the meaning of the raised weapon

Aizen cleaned his sword with a swift flick, not even bothering to sheath it. He had a feeling he would need it before the night was over.

"It was a white-haired boy, wasn't it?" the man nodded, and Aizen turned back to Gin.

"Follow me if you wish, but you _will_ be here when I get back, one way or another."

Gin nodded slowly.

"'m still loyal to ya, Sousuke," he said quietly. The other man didn't respond, but instead turned away.

As soon as Aizen was out of the door, Gin moved to Izuru's side. He brushed a thumb over the boy's cheek, then kissed him, softer than he ever had in life. A reward, even in death, he thought. Fitting, for the boy who had so well defended his master.

He pulled away slowly, then gave a start as he realized that he could feel a shallow breath on his bloodstained lips.

Quickly, he gathered the boy's limp body up in his arms. He knew one doctor, at least, who would take the boy in, no questions asked.

Gin knew he owed the kid that much, at least.

---

Toshirou quickly grabbed both papers as he ran out of the room towards where he knew Matsumoto would be. He slammed open the western-style door, ignoring the tawdry scene within, and yelled for her to follow.

There was a quick scream from the minister – he didn't want to think about what she'd done to elicit that pained response – and then she was beside him, hurriedly clothing herself.

"What's wrong?"

"That guy's been bought off. He's working for a traitor – bought off with prostitutes for his personal use. It's all right here." He pointed to the letters in his pocket.

Rangiku went pale. Giving prostitutes in return for loyalty – it seemed horribly familiar. Much too familiar.

"The room has people watching it, too. He was another 'gift.' Guards are probably on their way. Or worse – the guards and Aizen Sousuke. It seems all of this is his doing. I bet," he growled, "that he had something to do with Momo's murder after all."

Rangiku swallowed. Now, she knew who Gin's mysterious superior was. Everything made sense.

Realizing their limited amount of time, they began to run in the direction they knew the door would be.

"Toshirou… I think you might have been right about Gin. I think he's been working for Aizen… Making sex slaves is something he has done in the past, and I don't doubt he's still doing."

"Those _bastards_." His face went livid. He had suspected that Gin knew more than he was saying, but decided not to pursue it, and now they were both in danger.

They reached the door quickly enough, bursting through and ignoring the guard completely. But before they had taken ten steps, Toshirou heard a familiar voice.

"Going somewhere, are we?" Aizen's words came from behind them, making them that much more terrifying.

Hitsugaya spun around, furious, to meet the gaze of the traitor, whose eyes burned with the same anger as his own. Matsumoto turned to watched, then backed up several feet, so as to be beyond the reach of a sword.

She felt relief fill her body when she realized that he had not noticed her. She briefly thought of running, but she knew she couldn't leave Toshirou to meet his fate alone.

"You bastard. You know who killed Momo, don't you?" Hitsugaya snarled.

"I wouldn't say that, exactly." He paused. "More like, I killed her myself." Aizen grinned, expression turning manic as it grew wider. Toshirou put a hand on his sword.

"I enjoyed every minute of it." His words dragged slowly, and it took Toshirou a minute to register what he was saying. "She begged so prettily, did Momo. At the beginning, she begged for more. By the end, she was begging for death."

Toshirou cut him off with a roar, sword slashing toward the captain's head in a blind rage. But Aizen's sword was already unsheathed, and he blocked in half an instant.

"Don't be so overconfident, or you'll meet your friend in death. Or is that what you're looking for? An easy suicide?" he asked pointedly, every word burrowing into the boy's mind and making the experience almost unbearable. Aizen's grin did not falter – he realized that the boy was distracted. Within seconds, he was disarmed and on the floor with Aizen's sword at his neck.

"Say hello to her for me. After all, like you said, she did respect me so very much." He raised his sword to cut the boy's neck, but stopped as another person entered the scene. He recognized the man at once, without even looking.

"Gin. How very nice of you to join us." Aizen motioned to the terrified door-guard that he come restrain the boy, for the moment, after which he turned to meet his subordinate.

Gin was unsmiling, which surprised Aizen some – and he stared at Rangiku with something akin to horror. Aizen took one good look at Gin, then at Matsumoto, and realized what he had missed. He gave Gin a long, sinister smile.

"So this is your woman, then." He paused.

"You said you were loyal to me, Gin? Prove it. Kill her."

Gin's face drained of what little color had been left. Rangiku stared at him in disbelief, shock – and shame, for ever having trusted him.

Gin remained frozen to the spot. A few moments later, he seemed to collect his head, and spoke.

"I can' do that, sir."

Her face flooded with relief, but Aizen's grew livid with rage. He took two steps in her direction, and in an instant, Gin stood before her.

"You… you would dare to stand against me?" he asked, quietly, but more threatening than ever.

"Not standin' against ya, Taichou. 'm standin' in front o' her." His voice was soft, but deathly serious.

"Don' make me choose, Sousuke."

"You shouldn't have to choose." As soon as Aizen spoke those words, there was an explosion of red – and Gin crumpled to the ground, Aizen's sword still in him, blood staining his blue kimono black.

Aizen, manic grin still on his face, looked down to gloat over his victory, and instead of a defeated face, saw a blade of bright silver protruding from his gut. Aizen Sousuke's fall was slower, more controlled, but Toshirou didn't move an inch from where he had stood when he killed the man.

Matsumoto, oblivious to the captain's demise, was instantly down by her friend's side.

"Gin, you stupid bastard, I never thought you'd do that for me. I never needed you to do that for me." Her voice shook, pained, and she wiped in vain at tears that she could not control.

"I told ya, I don' wanna see ya hurt, Ran-chan." His voice was steady and his smile soft, for once. The injury was too great for pain.

"You stupid…"

"Izuru's at a hospital, with a doctor I know. Take care of 'm, will ya? He mighta saved your life today, and I don' wan' both of us ta die doin' that, yeah?" He paused.

"Sousuke… 's important t' me, too. Don' think too bad of me, now, 'kay, Ran-chan?"

And with that, she kissed him, and he couldn't say he minded, because every movement was like an apology.

But mostly, this time, it was a goodbye.

---

---

A few days later, Gin was buried in a small cemetery near the capitol.

Matsumoto Rangiku cried at his funeral. Kira Izuru did not attend. His grief was beyond tears.

---

None of them believed that they deserved the medals that the Emperor gave them in light of the thwarted traitor.

Kira argued that he had done nothing. Toshirou said he had only been out for revenge, and Matsumoto said that she had actually hidden evidence of the upcoming betrayal. No-one listened.

Rangiku threw hers away. Kira kept his locked in a box with his string bracelet, neither of which he would ever be able to look at again.

Toshirou put his on Momo's grave.

---

It was several weeks before the three of them met again. The group was mostly somber –Toshirou had finally had time to mourn his lost love, and Kira was just beginning to mourn his own.

Rangiku slapped them both on the back and suggested a party.

It was time to move on, to dust of the pieces of their lives and put them back together. As she glanced back towards Kira's solemn face, she thought that some might need more help than others – but they would come through alright.

She would always come through. Nothing anyone ever did to her would break her. She was stronger than that.

So as they set a blanket on top of Gin's grave, and Rangiku produced sake, she had only one thing to say to him. Thank you.

Because thanks to him, everything would be alright again. Maybe not perfect, maybe a little emptier, but alright.

_---_

_---_

_fin_

_---_

_---_

Author's note: If you've made it to the end of my baby, thank you very much. I only hope that by the end, you cared half as much about the characters as I did.

Please comment, feedback is like water to me. Indispensable.

And to an anonymous reviewer going by the name of "…..," thank you for your glowing review! Words can't express how flattered I am. I swooned for at least half an hour. I would be honored if you would look me up occasionally and read what I've written. And if I ever get published, you'll be the first to know.

Thank you again, so very much. Everyone.


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